Medication containers, for example vials, ampoules or cartridges, are widely used as containers for preservation and storage of medical, pharmaceutical or cosmetic preparations to be administered in liquid form, in particular in pre-dosed amounts. These generally have a cylindrical shape and have a bottom or lower edge so that the containers can be placed perpendicular and upright on a flat surface. Such containers can be made of plastic or glass and are available in large quantities at low costs. In order to fill the containers under sterile conditions as efficiently as possible concepts are increasingly used according to which the containers are already packaged in a transport or packaging container at the manufacturer of the containers under sterile conditions, which are then unpackaged and further processed at a pharmaceutical company under sterile conditions, in particular in a so-called sterile tunnel.
For this purpose, various transport and packaging containers are known from the prior art, in which a plurality of medication containers are concurrently arranged in an irregular or regular arrangement, for example in a matrix arrangement along rows and columns extending perpendicular thereto. The regular arrangement has advantages in the automated further processing of the containers, because a glass-to-glass-contact of the containers can be prevented and because the containers can be transferred to processing stations at controlled positions and in a predetermined arrangement, for example to processing machines, robots or the like. However, the regular arrangement of the containers also has disadvantages, in particular because the maximum packing density (closest packing) of the containers cannot be accomplished.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,118,167 B2 discloses a transport and packaging container and a packaging concept, wherein the further processing of the containers is always performed in such a way that the supporting structure is first taken out the transport and packaging container and that the containers are then removed from the supporting structure and isolated and are transferred individually to the processing stations on a conveyor, in particular a conveyor belt, and further processed there. This limits the speed in the further processing that can be attained. Particularly during the isolation of the containers by means of cell wheels or the like, it always happens that individual containers abut uncontrollably, leading to an undesirable abrasion and consequently to contamination of the interior of the containers or of the processing station and to a deterioration of the outer appearance of the containers, which is undesirable.
GB 2478703 A discloses a supporting structure for supporting a plurality of vials for applications in gas or liquid chromatography. The supporting structure consists of two plates in which a plurality of receptacles are formed for accommodating the vials therein and which can be folded to each other for closing. The receptacles of the two plates are offset to each other so that the containers are stapled in order to double the packing density, but in order to enable a good access to the containers in the unfolded position.
US 20110132797 A1 discloses a transport container for vials for microbiological samples, consisting of a plurality of box-shaped segments, which can be plugged together to form the transport container. The vials are inserted into trough-shaped receptacles on the top of a respective segment and are disposed in an accommodating space formed by the segments when plugging together two adjacent segments. However, measures for sealing the interior are not disclosed.
FR 2595667 discloses a box-shaped container, into the lower segment of which a plurality of ampoules can be inserted, wherein the segment can be sealed against the environment by means of a cover that can be plugged on. However, measures for sealing the interior of the container are not disclosed.
US 20090100802 A1 discloses the use of a tray, wherein a direct glass-to-glass contact of the containers is prevented by means of rings on the bottom or also by means of an insert having receptacles for the containers. To further prevent a glass-to-glass contact of the containers, a sleeve enshrouding the transport container is used, in which a vacuum prevails, so that the sleeve is also pressed into the gaps between directly adjacent containers. Also with this concept, however, a maximum packing density of the containers in the transport container cannot be attained.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,537,189 discloses a transport assembly for a temporary storage of vials during freeze-drying. The transport assembly comprises a base, a frame inserted therein having no bottom and a box-shaped upper part. This transport assembly serves to ensure that the vials can be pushed directly onto the bottom of a freeze dryer by means of the frame. However, the vials are only accommodated in this transport assembly temporarily, but are not packaged therein.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,243,049 A discloses a similar transport assembly comprising a tray which is designed to be open on one side, and a frame inserted therein having a movable traverse bar, which serves for clamping the vials in the frame. By means of the frame, the vials are jointly inserted into the tray so as to be pushed into the freeze dryer finally.
Further packaging structures are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,100,263 B3 and US 20110277419 A.